The following 10 Theses of Professor Dr. Gerd Meyer promoting Erich Fromm's humanistic intention are very valuable in breaking the ice of powerlessness, which dominates the feelings of the masses in an authoritarian atmosphere of any social community at large...

the limits of law and structures:
in personal interaction, another person
has only that much power as given to him by
myself.

2.

Our evaluation strongly determines the status
and the prestige of the powerful as well as the
powerless and the relative impact of their power.

3.

In social relations, superior power which I
suppose I have to bow to, in reality is often
based on the force of habit or on voluntary acceptance.

4.

Overcoming powerlessness starts

in our minds:

we ourselves, by our way of thinking, we
make us dependent and hinder us to become
stronger.

5.

Very often we think too much in a negative
and restrictive manner. We do not see enough
the positive chances and opportunities for
change.

6.

Every change starts inside of us.

7.

Every change starts in my own sphere of responsibility.

8.

We often underestimate the impact of active
and innovative minorities, the power of solidarity
and courage at the grass roots level of society.

9.

Productive is an understanding and practice
of power which does not strive for control of others,
but that is built and used to work together
for common interests and the well-being of as
many as possible. This is a democratic way to
combine legitimate interests of our own with social
and political solidarity.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Social relations and the nature of conflict in a community (family, community or state etc. ) are, according to Alexander Wendt, characterized by the sense of perception as enemies (Hobbesian), rivals (Lockean), friends (Kantian) or

I would add "the other", which may look like utterly "new" or seems "neither fish nor fow" for all the formers!

To bring about and for "the other" to emerge; in the system, the seeds of "the other" have to be structurally constituted.

1. Enemies: the same system, different goals, different structures and methods

2. Rivals: The same system, similar goals, similar structures and methods but different benefits

3. Friends: The same system, similar goals, similar structures and methods but distributed benefits

4."The other": Another system, another vision, perspective and goal, another structure and methodology.

The Stalemate with no change for the last 20 years in spite of all reasons for "the other" to emerge lies in the fact that all i.e. the regime and the opposition are all subsumed in the first three domains of systemic interactions."The other" is still in the dark, behind the curtain!

Political Change could be effected two times during the prior 30 years ( 1st. 1961-1974; 2nd.1975-1991). There had been two fundamental changes in these periods, due to the fact that, the real "other" had indeed emerged after constituting itself for long. In both cases; first, "the other" vis a vis the ancient regime and then later, "the other" vis a vis the military "communist" regime.

*
But, it seems that the evolutionary logic of the State seeks to bring the players towards the reality of the systemic development in the state structure, forcing the players to differentiate themselves by instigating the sense of monopolizing violence in "the objects" of the state, who failed to be subjects and play the appropriate role of the human agency in minimizing the violence, which the state on the contrary tends to maximize, resisting the status quo towards stability. This lies in the nature of the state, pushing towards a course of a higher system, via chaos at the edge, just before the systemic order. The new systemic order, coming through the emerging and interaction of "the other" against the "conserving" legacy forces!

The "conserving" legacy forces are sectional, parts and units of the system. i.e. the sectional ethnic players.
The "other" is the new holistic force, integrating the sections into the evolutionary formation of the Ethiopian State, with all the Weight of its Past to form the future of the systemic whole in the region, overcoming the chaos of the present and the edge represented by the sectional forces (i.e. ethnic disintegration or alienation).

Followers

Life is transparent, warm and swirls randomly like a soft light. And it constantly changes...Life illuminates itself and then it begins to illuminates a new life.A sprouted mass of innumerable lights become a flow before long, and then become the part of the life-throb of ages.That ties life, this moment now.